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Steib Sidecars

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weh8127
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Joined: Tue Jan 16, 2018 11:28 am
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Steib Sidecars

Post by weh8127 »

As Ande at Barrington Motor Works finishes up mounting my 1955 S500 to my 1963 R60/2, I'll share some observations about new Steib products. As I mentioned in a previous post the fender and the tub itself needed so much work that it made more economic sense to replace them. I ordered the fender from S. Meyer in Germany and the tub from Blue Moon Cycle in Norcross, GA. Both came primed, but that, as I found out, did not mean paint ready. Both were in the same condition from different suppliers so I can only conclude that that is the way Steib makes them. They were sprayed with rattle can primer already rusting and in need of body work to repair blemishes and fit. Now that they're finished they look great and we know what's under the paint.

My advice to anyone buying a new Steib sidecar is not to buy it with finished paint; buy it primed only. If you buy a fully painted car, you will never know what's under the paint until it starts to fail. If it comes in ready to shoot it won't cost you much more than ordering it painted and you'll know what you have. If you need to start over as we did with the fender and tub, now is the time to do it.

In addition, I think you are better off powder coating the frame, anyway.

Do it this way and you have a much better shot at a satisfying conclusion to your project,

Bill Husted
Barre, MA
Bill Husted
Barre, MA USA
1963 R60/2 w/ 1955 Steib S500
1973 R75/5

magri6837
Posts: 29
Joined: Fri Oct 27, 2006 3:00 am

Re: Steib Sidecars

Post by magri6837 »

Bill, I came across your post about your sidecar. You said you purchased the tub from Blue Moon. I was thinking of adding a TR500 to my BMW and also having Ande at Barrington install it. I researched Steib sidecars and found that Ideal Seitenwagen in Berlin makes the sidecars and chassis. Do you know if that is where Blue Moon sources them from? Thanks. By the way I noticed you're from Barre, Ma. I'm located in Watertown, Ma.
mike m
1967 R50/2, 2001 Harley Heritage w/ sidecar, 2007 suzuki DR200SE

Douglass
Posts: 82
Joined: Sun Aug 11, 2013 5:34 pm

Re: Steib Sidecars

Post by Douglass »

I don't want to lead this thread astray, but I recently got a Steib S501; all there with a house paint finish. It's reputedly a 1954, but the tag doesn't have a Bauyahr box. Does anyone know how else to date these hacks?

The next question is the tug. I have a R67 with half hub brakes and I'm hesitant to risk it all for period cred. Does anyone have or can anyone direct me to a source for the hydraulic apparatus to actuate the brake hub on the sidecar? Steib used to make a master cylinder for attaching to the rear brake rod on the bike. (My hack has the brake drum wheel hub.)
Douglass

weh8127
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Re: Steib Sidecars

Post by weh8127 »

The ATE master cylinder is listed here https://steib-bornowski.de/cart2/index. ... th=1_19_55 but I don't know if they have any; they didn't last year at this time. They pop up on Ebay from time to time and Ande at Barrington was able to score a NOS unit for me but it was pricey! Someone who knows what he's doing might be able to fabricate something for you. The BMW/ATE linked system isn't real effective; make sure you have upgraded brake linings in the front.

Behind the seat at top center there is a square tab sticking up from the body with a number stamped into it that matched the number on the plaque on the frame, which also listed the year, at least on my '55 S500.
You may be able to use that number to help date the car. However I do not know how to contact the manufacturer. All the stuff I bought came from distributers like Blue Moon. I believe Scottie Sharpe buys direct, so he may be able to help.

Others on this forum have commented on the work needed on new Steib parts to get them ready to paint, so I guess that's just the way things are. Regardless who you buy from, so far as I know they all come from the same place. The upside is that the final results were beautiful. I used Countryside Customs in New Braintree, MA and couldn't be happier.

Mike: I'm in Barre and you're in Watertown. You will be interested to hear that the sidecar I have came from Waltham.

Happy New Year!
Bill Husted
Barre, MA USA
1963 R60/2 w/ 1955 Steib S500
1973 R75/5

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Flx48
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Re: Steib Sidecars

Post by Flx48 »

Years ago I sourced rebuild kits for both the s/c master and wheel cylinders from Ideal; they were quite responsive and helpful.
At the time they were also offering new complete master and wheel cylinders.
And it was my impression at the time that they had s/c bodies, chassis, and parts made for them in Poland, presumably for the lower labor cost and the old world craftmanship, since the quantities made would not be mass production in today's sense of mass production.
It was also my assumption that Ideal, besides selling direct, sold/sells to dealers both in Europe and the states.
Am certainly open to correction on the above, if my ASSumptions are wrong!
Perhaps if Vech checks in again, he will enlighten us on the source(s) of the s/c parts he stocked.

I had run with no s/c brake for years because I hadn't been able to find the rebuild parts; I don't know how long Ideal had been in operation when I first did business with them.
When I did rebuild, I chose to jettison the quick disconnect and rigid tubing, instead opting to run a one-piece black sheathed ss braided line directly from master cyl to wheel cyl, to have a minimal number of fittings, and, also knowing that with another bike in the stable the rig wouldn't be converted back and forth solo to rig to solo; not the original configuration but I forgave myself.

Makes total sense that Ideal would spray an unfinished s/c with primer for the trip across to the states, to minimize the rusting from the salt air; any painter would be stripping the primer to deal with the fabrication imperfections before painting anyway, and dealing with just primer beats having to deal with shipping products like cosmoline.

A year or two ago I called Blue Moon looking for some small s/c bits and found the guys on the phone in their parts department pretty clueless, which I suppose makes sense, s/c parts can't be a large part of their trade; perhaps dealing with Landstrom himself would have eased matters, but I went back to Ideal simply because s/c stuff is their bread and butter and dealing with them was simple.
Even in today's world environment, I'd probably choose to deal directly with Ideal to buy a new chair, I would expect even with the shipping, the total cost would be better than sourcing the same product domestically.

I'm not familiar with putting a s/c on the R67, (pretty rare bike) or even the later /2 or /3 versions, just the later Earles bikes, but imagine you'll change suspension springs as is done with the Earles?
On the Earles models the solo brake rod is swapped for the larger diameter two-piece rod.
The shorter piece connects the brake pedal linkage to the master cylinder body, so the m/c body gets pulled forward when the pedal is actuated.
The longer piece connects the brake lever back on the bevel drive to the piston internal to the m/c, and stretching the two apart pushes the brake fluid to the wheel cylinder.
On the Earles models the solo brake arm on the bevel drive is swapped for one with an adjustable stop, which helps balance brake action between m/c wheel and s/c wheel, the rest of adjustment takes place at the brake rod to master cyl piston connection.
And the two-piece brake rod takes a larger dia wingnut at the bevel drive end than on the solo rod.

The sidecar hydraulic brake adds stopping power, though it is far from a dramatic difference, but was enough to pass the TUV requirements of the day.
As Bill advised, your front brake is your best friend; use modern linings and tune frequently.
I remove the front wheel, blow out the accumulated brake dust, and readjust the brake every second oil change; that's every 1500-1800 miles. (more frequent oil changes when pulling a sidecar full time)
Best-
George
Cover of a 9 page pamphlet on the hydraulic brake, useful for torturing oneself translating from German.
Cover of a 9 page pamphlet on the hydraulic brake, useful for torturing oneself translating from German.

Douglass
Posts: 82
Joined: Sun Aug 11, 2013 5:34 pm

Re: Steib Sidecars

Post by Douglass »

Right you are: I yanked the seat and numbers appeared.
20211226_143122.jpg
20211226_143204(0).jpg
20211226_143113.jpg
Can anyone translate Steib to the Roman calendar?
Douglass

magri6837
Posts: 29
Joined: Fri Oct 27, 2006 3:00 am

Re: Steib Sidecars

Post by magri6837 »

Bill, it's interesting that your sidecar came from Waltham. You said you got a replacement tub from Blue Moon. I think they source them from Ideal-Seitenwagen in Berlin. Do you know if I'm correct? I was going to order a TR500 from Ideal in Germany so your description of how they are is good information. When I looked into getting the sidecar it seemed a little daunting dealing directly with Ideal in terms of shipping and customs etc so I thought getting it through Blue Moon would be a better way to go.

Mike Magrihttps://vintagebmw.org/forum/download/file.php?mode=view&id=30775&sid=eaad286596245c57d250cce2b55d0b2f
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mike m
1967 R50/2, 2001 Harley Heritage w/ sidecar, 2007 suzuki DR200SE

weh8127
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Re: Steib Sidecars

Post by weh8127 »

I wouldn't use Blue Moon again but your experience may differ. I don't know who they buy from. There are other state side distributors including Scottie Sharpe; you'd have to call him for price and to figure out freight, etc. but he's a pretty approachable guy. I've never used Ideal but have never heard anything bad about them. S. Meyer lists in their Ebay store a new TR500, painted black and unbraked, for $7400 plus $800 freight. You'd have to contact them for other configurations.

This is my first sidecar and my experience was that by the time I restored an original I could have bought new but I'm happy with a period piece, albeit with replacement parts. It would have been different if I had metal working and paint skills and equipment of my own.
Bill Husted
Barre, MA USA
1963 R60/2 w/ 1955 Steib S500
1973 R75/5

magri6837
Posts: 29
Joined: Fri Oct 27, 2006 3:00 am

Re: Steib Sidecars

Post by magri6837 »

Thank you for the info Bill. I will check out the companies you mentioned. Sidecars can be an expensive undertaking. I had the sidecar for my Heritage made by a sidecar guy in Pennsylvania (Claude Stanley). It's made from aluminum and I have about $9,500 into when all tallied.
Attachments
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20150803_122607.jpg
mike m
1967 R50/2, 2001 Harley Heritage w/ sidecar, 2007 suzuki DR200SE

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